The present invention relates to storage units for pickup trucks and other similar flatbed vehicles. The present invention also relates to air foils used to reduce air drag on moving vehicles.
One of the most common problems encountered by pickup truck owners is having suitable closable storage space outside of the cab of the pickup truck. In order to address this problem, a wide variety of storage compartments have been introduced in the prior art which may be placed immediately behind the cab or along the sides of the pickup truck bed. Such bed mounted storage boxes are difficult to access, requiring the user to crawl across the bed of the pickup truck to reach them.
The side mounted storage compartments, while providing easy access, are not practical for the every day pickup truck user, but are more suited for construction contractors, carpenters, tradesmen and the like. All of the storage devices known in the prior art simply add more bulk, and hence more drag, to the pickup truck itself.
It is also widely known that the tailgate of a common pickup truck produces considerable drag as the truck is traveling forward, and that by opening the tailgate, drag is reduced and gas mileage is improved. The storage compartment of the present invention utilizes the existing tailgate of a common pickup truck, and provides a sloping, angular surface that is tapered downward from the top of the tailgate to the bed of the pickup truck. This sloping surface improves the aerodynamics of the pickup truck which, in turn, improves the truck's gas mileage.
It is therefore a primary object of the present invention to provide a simple, easily-accessible storage compartment adapted for mounting between the wheel wells and the tailgate of a pickup truck bed.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a secure and airtight storage compartment for a pickup truck bed, which can be easily removed in the event the full length of the pickup truck bed is needed.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a new and improved truck storage compartment having a rear end opening adapted to be opened and closed by a conventional pickup truck tailgate.
It is a further important object of the present invention to provide a pickup truck storage compartment that is aerodynamically designed to reduce unnecessary drag and turbulence in the pickup truck bed while the pickup truck is moving.